finding nowhere

Athabasca Falls & Columbia Icefields - Jasper, Alberta, Canada

2011-07-11T14:59:00.000-07:00

From Jasper, we headed south down the Icefields Parkway.

This road was littered with glaciers!

First stop though, Athabasca Falls.

Brooke checking the view from the roof of the car.

Yep, the view is good.

At Columbia Icefield, they have markers out to show the ice melt over the years.

The closet mark was 2008, and was still 50-75 yards away from the icefield!

*NOTE: Yes, climate shift [or "Global Warming"] is natural/cyclical, but it's happening faster than it should.

We were still a half mile away from the icefield, but found a date close to Andrea's birth year!

By the way, right before we left for this trip we found out we're having a baby boy!

We are super excited, and look forward to all of the adventures...with a baby in tow!

Even though it looks like pavement, Brooke is on Columbia Icefield!

Andrea approves!

Brooke grew up with glacial grooves in his cellar, but to see scratches from ice up close is still crazy!

Weeping Wall; a cliff that's wet.

Brooke turned from taking photos to find Andrea looking at paint swatches!

What a designer!

Nursery color choices!

From Jasper, we wound up in Lake Louise for a few days.

Dinner on the grill!

Angel Glacier - Jasper, Alberta, Canada

2011-07-10T14:45:00.000-07:00

After Maligne Canyon, it was off to Angel Glacier. Above, Andrea checking to see if the rain has stopped.

Angel Glacier...if you look closely, and use your imagination, it looks like an angel with it's wings spread out.

Two angels!

There was still a lot of snow pack.

Angel Glacier melted into a lake that had another glacier!

Maligne Cayon - Jasper, Alberta, Canada

2011-07-10T14:41:00.000-07:00

Before leaving Jasper, we checked out Maligne Canyon.

At the end of the little trail, we saw two guys...who didn't look like they knew what they were doing...rappelling into the canyon.

Maligne Lake - Jasper, Alberta, Canada

2011-07-07T22:44:00.000-07:00


After backpacking the Skyline Trail, we hiked back to the car to unload our packs and pack our kayaks.

In Maligne Lake, the mountains fall into the lake. Glorious!

We broke for lunch on a beach...look at this place!

Self Portrait from the dry bag on my kayak.


Fisherman's Bay Campsite. Relaxing on the dock. It's not often you can read a book on a dock and stare at a glacier!

In the early morning we kayaked down to Spirit Island...before the tourists got there!

5 1/2 months pregnant and kayaking!

"How you like me now!?"

Iconic Spirit Island.

A nice family from South Carolina took this photo for us. They had the cutest grand kids...and the kids were nailing the trout!

For the amount of backcountry trips we do, we find it interesting that most of the wildlife we see is along the road.

Mama Bear and her Three Cubs!

Back to town for a few days rest!

Skyline Trail - Jasper, Alberta, Canada

2011-07-03T12:55:00.000-07:00

Jasper National Park: Our destination for Week 1 for some backpacking, kayaking, and day hiking!

On our way into Jasper, we found this lone black bear munching along the road.

Kayaks in tow for a backcounty kayak trip in Maligne Lake.

Glorious. Free.

In Jasper, we wanted to hike the Skyline Trail. Since the middle was still snowed in, we opted to hike as far as we could for two nights and some day hiking. At the start of the trail was a beautiful old burned area.

Thank goodness for bridges. This was during their big snow melting time.

Airing out our feet at base camp.
This was at Little Shovel Pass Camp.

This is bear country; both black and grizzly. You have to hang your food when not in immediate use!

Tent Sweet Tent: Our home for the next 21 days or so!

Did we mention: Glorious and Free!

This woman is 5.5 months pregnant!
Crossing snowfields, climbing, and always trying to make me keep up...My hero!

Still too early for wildflowers, but we found one or two.
Anyone know what this is?

Little Shovel Pass.

Not a bad place to have lunch!

We stopped in the meadow/valley between Little Shovel Pass and Big Shovel Pass.
They was an ice cornice blocking Big Shovel Pass, so this was the end of the line for us.

River crossings too!

Seriously...you can't stop her!

Building a cairn on Little Shovel Pass on the return trip.

Self Portrait...as always!

Happy....Tired Campers!

Retrieving the food bag for breakfast!

Our next phase in backcountry kayaking in Maligne Lake...

STATS!

2011-06-28T10:37:00.000-07:00

I just found some stats for our blog; a wealth of knowledge!

I noticed a few things:

Our readership has gone international!
I have no idea where Estonia is, but they love us!
People still use Internet Explorer?! Really?
What the heck is Iceweasel?!
Our readers are PC people? Nothing wrong with that, just saying it's "interesting."

Whidbey Island

2011-06-28T10:05:00.000-07:00

Spring time on Whidbey Island is always a treat.

We spent a few hours sipping coffee outside Useless Bay Coffee Co. Townsend loved the attention from the visitors, as well as laying in the sun rays.

Our big "lap dog."

Enjoying the weather.

Townsend loved playing ball and running the beaches of Double Bluff Park.
We enjoyed the beautiful walk along the sandy shores.

It was a nice relaxing weekend we spent together

Townsend following this little water path up the bluffs! It was pretty steep, but very silty/sandy.

Waiting patiently for the ball.

Our crazy puppy dog.

Sunset on the sound

Walking at Deceptions Pass State Park the next morning, after a nice cool night camping.

Among the driftwood, Olympics in the background.

We checked out the Coupeville Farmer's Market on Saturday and stumbled upon this BBQ stand. WOW! We voted it the best BBQ this side of the Mississippi. Good stuff.

Beckler River Campground -> Bridalveil Falls -> Mt Index

2011-06-08T18:02:00.000-07:00


Right next to our campsite was the Beckler River. We'd recommend campsite #26.

Townsend taking a few drinks.

Eggs for breakfast to prepare for our hike up to Bridalveil Falls. Oh yeah, and testing our new stove for car camping: a Primus!

Townsend found some breakfast too: a yummy stick!

We're never quite sure what Towno thinks of our adventures.

Right below Bridalveil Falls. Easy hike, tough for the first one. It reminded us of a little Reichenbachfalle.

Towno leading the way...

through the lush trail!

Like we said, we're never quite sure. Towno acted like he has never been this worn out...for two days!

He slept the day away as we made quesadillas on our new stove!

And he slept through an evening of reading books!

Left of center is Mt Index with Bridalveil Falls below it in the trees.

Taken outside of the Espresso Chalet on Rt 2. We can't believe we pass this every time we go skiing at Stevens Pass. Come to find out, Harry and Henderson's was filmed close by!

Eagle's Landing 2011

2011-02-13T20:38:00.001-08:00

a dog's day!

Whidbey Island 2011, Andrea's BDay - Double Bluff Dog Park

2011-02-13T20:32:00.001-08:00

Flash.

Cold Day; finding shelter in a drift wood structure.

This is what Townsend and Judge would have looked like!

Loving it, or hating it?

The birthday girl!

Andrea and Towno way down the beach!

Kite boarder.

Gold Creek Trail Snowshoe 2011

2011-01-22T19:25:00.000-08:00

Group [L-R]: Danelle, Matt, Brenda, Brandon, Andrea, Andrew & Libby

Towno got a bit tangled.

Andrew, Libby, and Brenda.

Towno, Brooke, and Andrea.

Brandon would like a general caution to be noted regarding trying to walk backwards in snowshoes.

Matt had fun trompin' around!

Amazing how Towno can stretch his paws! Built in snowshoes!

Couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day: looking up to Rampart Ridge.

Matt and Danelle.

The Hoard: Andrew, Brenda, Libby, Brooke, Brandon, Andrea, Towno, Matt, and Danelle.

Beautiful day!

Packing up after lunch. Towno shakin' off!

There couldn't be a more noble dog. Goofy, but noble!

Andrea and Danelle.

Ozette Triangle - Backpacking WA Coast, pt ii

2010-05-16T22:00:00.000-07:00

making our way down 3 miles of the beach to sand point.

at times, hiking was slow because of trees that had washed up.

nothing beats walking along tidal pools on a brisk
washington-coastal morning!

andrea looking for starfish and other aquatic creatures in a tide pool.

at times we had to crawl over, or under, huge trees!

we were surprised by how much plastic had washed up on the beaches.
some folks created art-like scuptures next to their camps, we just
realized, and felt guilty, of how much plastic we "consume" at home.

at wedding rocks there are legended to be over 50 petraglyphs.
we only found a few, but what we saw was impressive.

this was our favorite 500 year old petraglyph!

on the coast, you always have to be aware of the tides.
at some points, the tide is so high that there are no beaches.
the above marker is a 'hedland marker.' it marks an area that
a hiker must leave the beach.

deer shouldn't be on the beach; there's nothing for them!
but we saw two! they hiked with us for a mile or so.

a typical coastal rock/island/outcropping.

at sand point and ready to leave the beach for a 3 mile hike through the
woods to our car.

andrea thought she'd be sly and sneak a kiss; i noticed it. :)
notice the hedland marker in the back ground.

we highly recommend this short hike for everyone. next time we make
the trip we'll let folks know!

Ozette Triangle - Backpacking WA Coast

2010-05-15T22:00:00.000-07:00

out to the olympic penisula to backpack the ozette triangle.

there was a great boardwalk that lead us over the boggy marsh.

keeping a close eye on the decaying boards.

across the meadows where lars alhstrom was, at one point, the furthest west settler.

gazing out, trying to to imagine the homestead that once stood here.

through more rain forest and marshes.

arriving at the coast, we had to cross a small stream and find a campsite.

we 'dropped-pack' at our campsite and saw what the coast is about.

not a bad location for a night's sleep.

taking it all in.

after camp was setup, we went exploring.

rocks in near-perfect spherical goodness.

not even out here can we get away from home repairs!

happy!

a little tidal pool with a little crab.

brooke found a large tree to climb.

it's amazing what washes up, and how it washes up.

andrea, pondering the existence of the tree roots. :)

back to dinner. we're sure glad we decided to pack in some pinot gris!

enjoying the post-italian dinner beach fire. rough life.

waiting for the sun to go down, enjoying the sounds of barking sea lions on a distant island.


.perfect end to a perfect day. we dosed off in our tent listening to the waves crash against the shore.

Rattlesnake MT [Ledges and East Peak]

2010-05-09T22:47:00.000-07:00

in preparation for our summer vacation, and general
enjoyment of the seattle outdoors, we'll behiking
a lot of elevation. we started on rattlesnake mt
for a warm up. this was our view from the "upper ledge."

family portrait.
we enjoyed a nice lunch with a half-dozen other people.
tip: hike further to the "upper ledge" to avoid the crowds.

happy hiker!

tired hiker.

this is townsend's favorite part of hiking.
we'll call him an "extreme napper."
he puts up with us so wel!

as we reached east peak, and settled in for snack.
towno sauntered over, laid his head on my shoulder,
and signed deeply. he was, as usual, distraught.

sun halo.
we snacked, rested, and took in an amazing view
of mt rainier before heading back down.

oh yeah, we also gave towno some encouragment
for the trek down!

back at home in the post-hike fetal position.
does anyone else have a lazy gsp?!

India

2010-03-23T21:09:00.000-07:00

I had an opportunity to take a trip to India with a group of 10 people who I didn't really know. Seems like my cup of tea!

[We left Wed. March 3, and made it to Chennai late Friday night]

This is the train we would be traveling in for the next 14 hours to Visakhapatnam, India, where we will be working for the next 7 days.

Villages along the train tracks. Very impoverished.

el bano. lovely.

Villages along the train tracks. Very impoverished.

Our cozy cabin. Anita, Catherine, Denyse.

It was fascinating to see the country roll by on the train ride, watching the many, many people doing their daily activities: riding to work, washing laundry, working the fields, repairing the tracks, selling goods.

Another village with wild water buffalo.

a boy filling up a jug of water.

Families live under these bridges.

Working.

We made it to Visakhapatnam in good time. An 'auto' rickshaw.

two boys waiting for their father.

We went to church Sunday morning in 'the slums.'

Pinky playing the hand drums!

the church service

We had the rest of the day to do whatever we wanted. A few of us traveled up a hill to see these gods, Shiva and Parvathi

Denyse, Catherine and I overlooking the city.

Visakhapatnam

We then took a trip down to the beach to say we waded in the Bay of Bengal

just another day at the beach!

Two boys selling sea shells

We made it to our post for the week. Our group would be teaching Vacation Bible School to more than 500 kids! 120 of them live there in the Children's Home/Orphanage, while the rest are able to go home.

Today's Memory Verse

smart kids!

Bruce with some girls.

Arjuna (the director) with his girls.

Denyse with her new friends

Sruthi and me. She was attached to my hip the whole week! Cutie.

Prishanti and Sruthi

Raji and me. (Arjuna's wife and the mother of my good friend in Seattle, Archana!)

The kids sang this song for us almost every day. We love it!
"The tree that was planted in the middle of the field..."

You do the hokey pokey and you turn yourself around....

Prasad

Kusama, Ramadevi, Sei, Devi - I love these girls!!

A beautiful Hindi dance
(boys will always be boys!)

hanging out during play time.

Sei, Sruthi and me in our 'secret spot.'

the older girls jump roping

Sruthi, Prishanti, and Sei in their bedroom

Kamala Priya. She will be going on to Junior College next year, and eventually a 4 year college to study nursing! Brooke and I have signed on to support her to continue her education. The more children who have this support to continue, the more opportunities to break the cycle of poverty in this country. What a great opportunity. If you are interested in sponsoring a child, please contact me!

On the last day the teachers of the schools, along with all the kids, presented us with these beautiful flower necklaces!...what a gift!!!

colorful tapestries

children outside the school

The kitchen and cafeteria at sunset.
The last day we attended the graduation for the Masters of Theology school that shares the campus with the children's home.

Driving in India is nuts! The lines are merely suggestions, and it is perfectly acceptable to drive within 2 inches of another car/motorcycle/rickshaw/bus/truck, and to use your horn every 30 seconds. who knew?

A taxi ride in Chennai
(accompanied by the driver's sweet music)

The streets of Chennai .

Our final drive in India concluded with a crammed rickshaw along the streets of Chennai, back to the airport.
India...you are so beautiful. In many different ways.
Now back to America.

First....a quick stop in Singapore to unwind for a day. Much needed!

Thank you to everyone who supported me prayerfully and financially for this trip! It has definitely changed my view on life and has made me especially grateful for all that I have.

And thank you to all you beautiful children at the home. I will never forget the memories, joy, and laughter we shared. You have changed my heart in so many ways.

That they may be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified!
Isaiah 61:3

Apology & Schweizter Ski Trip

2010-02-08T22:00:00.000-08:00

no, we're not dead.
sorry for the two months of silence. it's been quite busy, but we're prepared to get you caught up!

we spent this past weekend at schweizter ski resort in idaho.
schweizter is probably the biggest-closest ski resort to washington, with the exception of whistler/blackcomb; which [1] doesn't have any snow and [2] is currently hosting the oylmpics.

schweizter is perched high above sandpoint, idaho and lake pend oreille [pronounced: pend-o-ray]. now some folks from the midwest are going to knock idaho, but don't...until you've been there. northern idaho is completely awesome!

we spent saturday and sunday skiing; a question we get a lot is "how was the snow?" good saturday, crunchy sunday with a few fluffy stashes.

...and thanks to the super bowl hardly anybody was out on sunday. we had this beautiful mountain to ourselves! way to go nfl, you do do something useful! :)

back in sandpoint, we hit up: mickduff's brewing company [try their organic ipa], laughing dog brewery [stop by and see to toby], northwest handmade [where we bought a sweet "blue pine" bench for our mud room], tons of little local shops, and misty mountain furniture, where andrea found a huge rustic chair; too bad it wouldn't fit in our car!

both schweizter and sandpoint were worth the trip, and we will definitely make it again. but maybe next year we'll try whistler...if they have snow. :)

Luke Gullberg

2009-12-13T23:20:00.001-08:00

updated 12.16.09 @7:37pm

this article details the current status of the search for Katie Nolan and Anthony Vietti: http://www.oregonlive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/12/day_five_on_mount_hood_heavy_s.html

while the search has been suspended, please continue to pray that God would work in this situation.

a past video from Luke's myspace:

Mt. Rainier

Lukey | MySpace Video

The past 24 hours has been quite difficult. We heard that our friend Luke Gullberg's body was found on Mt Hood. Luke, and two others [still missing] had attempted a difficult line on the summit of Mt. Hood.

Luke was one of the most positive people we have ever met, and had a smile that would immediately warm your heart. If you ever talked with him, you will always remember his smile, and his head nodding in excitement.

Our confidence rests knowing that Luke is in a much better place, Heaven. He passed doing something he loved. Luke was an expert climber and his story will encourage many.

luke in lighter times; our halloween party dressed as his english professor, in our attic.

Please pray for his family [His father Rod, sister Becky, and brother Scott], and the two other lost climbers, Katie and Anthony.

UPDATES: 12.15.09 @ 4.45pm
Still searching for Katie and Anthony. They have been out for 5 days. But we do not lose hope.
For those of you questioning the use of Personal Locater Beacons, and wondering who is paying for this...please read this article posted by Portland Mountain Rescue.

For current information:
oregonlive.com
katu.com

Yosemite Backpack Days 3 & 4

2009-10-13T23:59:00.000-07:00

Our second night in the backcountry was the coldest. We found a great site tucked within a boulder field and out of the wind.

We were able to have a fire here, so we took full advantage. We warmed our core before hopping into tent.

Here was our view each night before turning off our headlamps. Dry socks each morning was an important thing. Especially when they are the only ones you have.

We awoke the next morning to frosty gear and frozen water bottles. We never thought about putting our water filter into the tent with us so it wouldn't freeze. We hung around camp 'til it thawed and we could fill up our nalgenes from the stream.

Fresh and ready to hit the trail.

Yosemite's backcountry is absolutely stunning.
We made sure to take it all in.

Day three we hiked to the top of Clouds Rest at 9930 ft. It had incredible views looking down through the valley. From the top we had a killer view of Half Dome and could see El Cap peeking through.

The backcountry had been fairly quiet through most of our trip. Today we ran into the 6th and 7th people we had seen so far. They took our picture before heading on their way.

A US Geological survey marker was found at the top of Clouds Rest.

Heading back down the spine of Clouds Rest.

Leaning tree framing Half Dome.

We hiked down to near the junction leading to the trail toward Half Dome. We grabbed a campsite with a beautiful view of this monstrous slab of granite.

We awoke with a clear view of our morning's activity. Half Dome.

Half Dome sits at 8836 ft. Not the highest in the park, but is known for its popular shape (an inspiration for The North Face logo.) It is a climbing haven for many. But more people chose to day hike the granite peak.

We read the stories of the hike up to Half Dome, but had no idea of the amount of granite stairs that were involved. Can you imagine crafting this trail?

Then we hit the bottom of the cables....
We had seen this photo before. Everyone takes it with the hopes to try and show their friends and family at home of what they accomplished. It didn't look very steep to us. So it was quite the surprise to see it in real life at a much sharper angle than the one we imagined! Nevertheless...we made it this far...we will continue to the top.

We grabbed some gloves left at the bottom and shimmied our way up the cables. It wasn't as rough as we thought...it was actually fun! Just don't look down.

Cairns greeted us at the top.

We made it!
Standing on the diving board with El Cap in the back.

Andrea, peering over the ledge.

We were glad to ascend the cables earlier in the morning with only a few people. Our descent was a little more crowded, but was filled with encouraging words to help get us down safely.

Back down at sub dome, we celebrated! That was awesome!

Now, back down to our campsite to grab lunch and pack out. We still had 7 miles ahead of us back to Little Yosemite Valley. We were glad that it was almost all downhill, but had no idea of the slabs of granite our poor feet would slam down onto.

Nevada Falls. Running low, but at least it's turned on this late in the season, thanks to the bit of snow earlier this week.

and Vernal Falls. One of the last main attractions before we made it back into civilization.

We enjoyed time out in the woods. to be quiet. to converse and dream together. to release control in this wild environment. to take in views and admire its Creator.

Yosemite Backpack Days 1 & 2

2009-10-13T21:10:00.000-07:00

we entered yosemite np through the north entrance and drove across tuolumne [too-all-uh-me] meadows. one of the largest alpine meadows in the states; it's quite majestic. we stopped to pick up our wilderness pass for our backpack, and continued down the road to yosemite valley.

upon arriving in yosemite valley you are immediately greeted by el cap. we'd learn a day later that it takes climbers normally 3-5 days to climb el capitan's 3000ft face!

as you're careening your neck to keep peeking a view of el cap, you find yourself faced by half dome.

with getting into the valley late, we set up our camp in the backpackers campground and headed off to the mountain lounge. for those east coast readers out there, i'll use this analogy: yosemite valley is to yosemite backcountry as gatlinburg is to the smokies. the only thing this valley lacks is a putt-putt course; although i'm sure it's hidden in curry village.

rising early, we broke camp, packed our bags and hopped a shuttle bus to the visitor center. we double checked the weather, used the bathroom for the last time, and started walking down the road. our plan was to hitch-hike up to tuolumne meadows and hike back to the valley. our hitch hiking proved to be harder than thought. the only two folks who stopped were from france and mexico. one wasn't sure where he was going and the latter had a full car. after walking down the shoulder for two miles, finally two guys stopped. they informed us they were heading up to tuolumne and would be glad to give us a ride. we enjoyed the hour and a half ride, and learned they both worked at the mountain shop. we thanked mike and eric as we exited the car at tuolumne meadows, hoisted our packs up, and started our four day hike into yosemite's backcountry.

yosemite has the coolest looking trail markers.

making our way up the trail to upper cathedral lake.

getting camp set up with just a few remaining minutes of daylight left. the temperature drops quickly at 9000 ft, so out came the down puffy sweaters!

as the sun began to set, we got treated to beautiful cathedral peak.

watching the night settle in.

we awoke to a bright sunny day. we hiked up over cathedral pass...

where we were passed up by a few groups of mule trains!

enjoying the warm afternoon and the open views.

a lunch spot with the most amazing views! we sat eating our bagel sandwiches over looking the sierra nevada mountains.
(side note: always pre-pack your bear cannister before heading out for a 4 day adventure. if this step is forgotten, be sure to eat the large items first.)

after crossing up and over cathedral pass, we came to long meadow. long meadow is the sight of one of a 'high sierra camps.'

this high sierra camp definitely had the nicest toilet! solar powered vent fan! very posh!

long meadow was a great place to take our packs off and stretch before we began the downhill section of our hike.

as we wound our way down to our next campsite, we passed many trees that looked withered and worn. there's a whole lot of sun, and not a lot of air up here.

Truckee -> Lake Tahoe -> Yosemite

2009-10-05T20:46:00.000-07:00

heading east from lassen volcanic national park we were hoping for warmer weather around lake tahoe, but we found more snow and our new favorite mountain town: truckee!

truckee is a wonderful little mountain town with amazing people and awesome art studios.

we first wandered into drake and lulu's. a cheerful little space that had a lot of metal and cloth art. we inquired about a cheap place to stay, as it was snowing and the temperature was dropping. many great suggestions were given, including one offer to stay at a friend's recently converted studio apartment.

next, we headed next door to Riverside Studio to check out pottery and other fine art creations. we ended up spending the snowy evening sharing stories over bottles of wine with allana and amie. we extended the evening over dinner at trio, and took them up on their offer of the studio apartment. amie and blake were gracious hosts. we hope we can return the favor someday.

when we awoke, snow covered the ground. we were thankful for a roof overhead, and warm blankets. southboard to yosemite national park was our agenda for today, but not without checking out lake tahoe first.

the water was so blue. snow had started to cover the mountains surrounding the lake.

andrea and i decided that the west road of lake tahoe, at the time we were driving it, was one of the most beautiful drives we've been on. above is emerald bay.

when we stopped for photos andrea found this big-ass pine cone! she stole it.

andrea wanted her photo with her and this peak!

as we were leaving the lake tahoe area, we began to ascend up and over monitor pass. in the distance we saw a weather station...or fire tower, or military installment. we really didn't know what it was, but the road was rocky, winding, and long. as our traveling motto is "leave no rock unturned" we turned off the nicely paved road. further proof that you need four-wheel drive.

here's a sample of what we get into.

twenty minutes up the rock road and the gate was locked! can you believe it! nobody came down to meet us. i was happy not to get arrested. we walked a little ways up the road, but then decided whatever was at the top wasn't worth the walk.

we could see forever up here. i think we were above the weather.

it was quite peaceful up here. nobody but us and the mountain. after "wasting" enough time, we traversed back down the mountain side to head south to yosemite.

WA -> Lassen Volcanic National Park

2009-10-03T22:00:00.000-07:00

this fall for vacation, we set off to california for some backpacking. a trisler vacation wouldn't be a trisler vaction if you headed straight to our destination; after all...our motto is 'the destination is the journey.'

our first stop was mt shasta city, which lies at the base of mt shasta in california. the town is filled with nice people, one of whom told us to venture down to the city park to drink some 'live' water out of the lava tubes.

we're not ones to pass up free water, so off we trotted. we had to wait in line to fill a bottle, as i think most town people get there drinking water from the city park. let me tell you, this water was alive!

andrea dipping her hands into the sweet, sweet nectar of the sacramento river headwaters.

after mt shasta, we headed down the road to lassen volcanic national park. lassen peak was the first volcanic eruption witnessed by man in the 'lower 48.' it's regrowth over the past one hundred years gives hope to the mt st helens area.

lassen peak.

lassen has a very interesting landscape. certain spots look like the moon with evergreen trees.

with the sudden temperature drop and snow, we only day-hiked one trail, bumpass hell. bumpass hell is not joke, just read the warning sign.

bumpass hell has a desolated beauty that we've never seen anywhere before.

matching down puffies are a must! :)

a mudpot with pyrite [fool's gold] .

on the hike out it really started snowing.

while sitting around a campsite in mid-twenty degree weather sounds appetizing somedays, today wasn't one of those. we thought we'd head to lake tahoe to try to warm up.

as we loss elevation, we found fall.

stay tuned for reports...

Kendall Katwalk

2009-09-30T16:00:00.000-07:00

I love fall. And I love getting outside, breathing in the cool, crisp autumn air to see beautiful colors changing. Sarah, Townsend and I headed up to Kendall Katwalk to do just this.

Rocky terrain on the way up there.

Townsend peering over the ledge, looking down into the valley.

Sarah nearing the katwalk. ("Where is this thing!?")

We stopped for a quick lunch break, which turned into a longer lunch break, since I looked around me and saw this:
and:
Brooke says I wear everyone out. Sorry, guys.

We made it to the Katwalk! Townsend told me it's rude to take a dog on a katwalk. So he calls it the DOGwalk.

Kendall Kat/Dogwalk is a thin section of trail on the PCT that was blasted off to skirt around this large mountain.

Red Mountain, located in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.

It was a great 11 mile hike filled with great colors and spectacular views.

sam quinn...the squirrel.

2009-09-20T21:42:00.000-07:00

i walked out the door the other day to find our dog in a quite, marvelous point. then i looked up and saw what he was pointing at...

sam quinn the squirrel!
[named after this sam quinn. i thought it was fitting.]

townsend held his point, and held his point, and held his point until he was shaking.

i called, 'get it!' and off towno tore after sam quinn and his walnuts.

sam dropped his walnuts. i would have done the same.

sam got away this time. it's been fun watching, as this has gone on for weeks!

American Lake Backpack

2009-08-29T22:07:00.000-07:00

there are only so many hikes and backpacks you can do inside of the national parks with a dog. truly, most national parks have a "six feet from car rule" for dogs. that is, dogs are allowed anywhere a car is allowed with an additional six feet for a leash. being dog owners, we would like to continue to visit our beloved parks with townsend.

there are loop holes. you can have dogs on the pacific crest trail [pct]...which runs through mt rainier national park!

we set off from chinook pass on the pct to american lake. here townsend is bending the law.

along the hike out were millions of nature's candy! these blueberries were delicious!
it was great hiking, picking and eating!

brooke got tired of losing most of his harvest to townsend, so he made towno pick his own. we had little black bear cub-ish dog scouring the landscape for the treats!

this trail was very reminiscent of the smokey mountains.

getting a late start gets you into camp late. grandpa's words of wisdom!

it was a little eerie hiking into camp around night fall. a light fog covered the terrain.

good morning sunshine! our dog yawns more then anything we've ever seen.

we walked down to the lake to fix a nice warm breakfast of oatmeal and hot chocolate.

andrea sips hot cocoa, townsend takes a nap. hey wait, didn't you just wake up!?

taking in the stunning views!

townsend wanted a brisk little wade to wake up. he doesn't swim, unless he falls in, he just wades.

american lake.

mt tahoma from the east.

stopping on the way back for townsend to get a drink and wade. the entire hike was filled with these gorgeous alpine lakes.

this is what townsend did about every 100 feet on the hike back. he'd turn back as if to say, "guys, i'm real tired." and then he would lay down.

it was a long way up to the saddle, especially when you're stopping every fifty feet to pick a handful of blueberries!
hiking down from the saddle on the way out.

although townsend acted exhausted for the entire hike out, when we reached the end of the trail he did what any teenager would have done. he jumped up on top of the retaining wall, turned, and stuck out his tongue.

teenagers.

Monkey

2009-08-20T22:16:00.000-07:00

this is my best friend Monkey.
Hi Monkey!

-towno

my first triathlon

2009-08-16T22:27:00.000-07:00

It's my goal that every year I try something new. So this year I took part in the Danskin Triathlon here in Seattle, at Genesee Park. I was one of 5300 women (wow, I know. let's just say there was a lot of estrogen present.)
This was kind of a big deal because...well...I'm terrified of drowning. So what better way to get over my fear than to sign up for a triathlon with 100+ other women around me kicking and scratching their way to the end? Brilliant, Andrea.

The line up of bikes.

Getting ready for my swim of 1/2 mile.

There were waves of 30-40 women every 3 minutes. This is my wave getting ready to dive into Lake Washington.

And the race begins!

Finishing up the swim. I'm out there...somewhere.
And no, I did not drown.

I met up with my friend, Jenn, at the end of the swim. Here we are dorking around during our transition to bikes.

Then I was off on my bike for 12 miles, across the I-90 bridge to Mercer Island and back.

The last leg was to run a 5K (3.1 miles) around to Seward Park and back to the finish line.

I finished in just under 2 hours. haha.

Jenn and I...our first tri! We had a blast and look forward to doing others together next year.

Spray Park, and on....

2009-08-02T18:39:00.000-07:00

What else better is there to do than go hiking on a beautiful summer day with the wildflowers in full bloom? We headed back to one of our favorite spots to camp for the weekend, Mowich Lake at 4900'.

We started with a day hike to Spray Park.

Just entering Spray Park at 5500'. Get out the bug spray. Lube up. Push on.

Taking a break on the path of wildflowers.

Indian Paintbrush. Always a beauty.

Some sort of delicate lilly.

Lupine. Fields and fields of beautiful lupine...

beneath a majestic mountain.

Mt. Rainier looks so close at 6500'! Tempted to run up to the top, but we'll wait. We'll see you next summer, friend, face to face.

Instead of heading up, we decided to push on and complete a 16.5 mile loop to bring us back to our campsite. This loop takes you toward Seattle Park, down to Carbon River, over to Ipsut Creek, then back over Ipsut Pass and to Mowich. Oh dear...what are we getting ourselves into?

When navigating through rocky territory, cairns (pictured above) are used to direct you back on trail, assuming you have strayed off admiring the mountain.

Getting ready to cross a snowfield. You might get an idea of the amazing views we had from the parks. We were looking at higher peaks all the way up in Canada.

This snowfield creates a beautiful pattern.
The difference between a glacier and a snowfield? Glaciers are always moving, where snowfields stay put. Interesting.

We stop at a creek to wash up and cool down.

Ever wonder what the beginning of a raging river looks like, before it has picked up speed, rocks, debris? Kinda like this. Peaceful. Quiet. Inviting.

Andrea thought it would be a good idea to add a gallon of water to her day pack for 'training.' It came in handy when we decided to push on past Spray Park!
Cataract Valley, 5200'

Part of the trail was to cross over this suspension bridge, built over the Carbon River at 3500'. Wow...it was high. And bouncy. But fun!

We crossed back over the Carbon River again at 2500'. Note all the debris and devastation from year after year of massive floods going through. The most recent being Jan '09.

We measled our way back up to 5300' through the pass and back to camp. We cleaned up a bit in the lake and took a dive into our sleeping bags. Ahh...another peaceful night at Mowich Lake.

Eily Sky

2009-07-26T22:30:00.000-07:00

We were pumped when we heard our friends from Cincinnati, Eric and Britt Hauck, were going to be on tour this summer, traveling all the way out here to Seattle! Brooke was bummed he couldn't join them for their tour, but was excited to play with them during one of their shows out here.

Eily Sky in concert. Check them out. They're awesome.
Dude on the hammered dulcimer, Britt, Dustin on bass, Eric on acoustic, Brooke on electric.

It was great to get a little taste of home. We miss these guys. We miss Ohio.

Afterwards we went to Elliott Bay Brewery for some food and brews. It was great to visit and catch up before they took off on the roads.

lavender festival: no boys allowed

2009-07-20T09:12:00.000-07:00

Each year the Olympic Peninsula holds a lavender festival located in Sequim, Washington. With so many of Brooke's family members loving this fragrant herb, I asked them to fly out and join me in attending the festival. We were all so excited!

Robyn (cousin), Susie (Aunt), Mom and I at the Lavender festival.

With 7 farms on the tour and one large street fair, we took in plenty of scents. Rows and rows of lavender. Lots of pink, purple, and green!

It was a great weekend full of laughter and fun! Thanks for coming out everyone! Can't wait for the next one:)

saturday morning kayak to vashon island

2009-07-15T07:13:00.000-07:00

nothing wakes you up like a early morning kayak!

we set out to kayak over to vashon island from our little neighborhood-puget sound-side park; seahurst park.

here is the pattern that we laid out, and what we kayaked. in all, it was about8.5 miles of beautiful puget sound!

what an absolute majestic view of mt rainier. when you're at water level, it looks massive!

brooke enjoyed watching the ferries in the distance.

we also got to see a seal and "baby orca whales." [note: we actually couldn't see what they were, although they were jumping in the distance and looked like baby orca whales, we can not confirm this].

safely back on shore. what a great paddle! next time i think we'll head out to blake island, which is a little further. maybe we'll over night!

Winthrop: Wolf Creek Trail

2009-07-04T20:32:00.000-07:00

this is the sight we see, before we close the back of our truck and head into the woods!

this weekend we've chosen to go backpacking outside of winthrop, washington. so we'll head up and over the north cascade mountains.

the pass looks like this.

as we headed up and over the pass, the light dimmed; unusual for the afternoon. after further examination, we realized there was a wild fire in the mountains, and the smoke from the fire was diffusing the sunlight. Crazy...cool.

We made it to camp at Pearrygin Lake State Park. It was about the only place in the area with water and trees for shade. Most people don't know, but Eastern Washington is more like a desert.

downtown Winthrop is like an old western town.

Townsend and Andrea hanging out by the lake.

It's finally cooling down.

Nothing beats a west coast sunset.
-----

Friday morning we took off into the woods. Our plan was to hike 8 miles up to a beautiful meadow area along the Wolf Creek in Okanogan National Forest.

Taking a lunch break at the creek. With 97 degree heat, it was pretty warm. It was nice to take a break in the shade.

Part of the hike was through an area that had been hit by a fire years ago. The dark skeleton-like trees were very eerie.

A beautiful grouping of dandelions. Softball size dandelions.

Townsend didn't do so well in the heat. After the first 5 miles, this was all he wanted to do. So we let him rest for a while. Brooke took a little nap himself.

We decided not to go all the way to our final destination. The heat and the physical exertion was a little too much for our four-legged-friend. (He's a dog!...where's all that energy!?) So we found a random campsite along the way and called it quits....

literally.

Townsend was very happy we decided to head back down the next day, instead of pushing up to the meadows. He had had enough. This was the only time he looked happy:)

I guess we were happy too. It was warm.

Brooke looking down to the river.

We welcomed the cool water rushing between our toes. Ahhh.....
-----

We decided to take a different way home, south on 97, through Chelan and Ellensburg. The landscape is so much dryer out here.

Big barns like this always draw us close to home.

Waiting for Brooke to grab dinner. We stayed inside the air conditioned car:) Now let's head back home and try and catch some fireworks!

sew....

2009-06-25T19:10:00.000-07:00

I made this monster diaper bag for my sister as a 'congratulations, you're a new mom' present. It was definitely the hardest thing I've made so far, but I think it turned out alright...

I used Amy Butler's fabric. Check it out, she's got some great stuff.

Look at all those interior pockets! I guess moms have a lot to carry:)
Enjoy it, Maura!

Meet Sam!

2009-06-24T16:20:00.000-07:00

The newest member of the Kimble family, Sam, was born May 2oth. So I had to fly out to Chicago to spend some good QT with my nephew, and of course, visit with my fam.

Sam and his parents, Steve and Maura.

My other brother, Bryan, his girlfriend, Emily, and my Mom all met out there.

Some good 'ole fashion cuddlage with baby Sam.

I don't know how I snagged this picture, but my favorite thing was right before he had to sneeze, as pictured above.

lessons from a dog: dance

2009-06-21T21:47:00.000-07:00

lessons from a dog:
dance like no one is watching.

4th year anniversary - orca island

2009-06-19T22:00:00.000-07:00

this year is our big 4 year anniversary!
off to orcas island for a nice, quiet, relaxing getaway.

the whole point of this trip was to spend time with
one another, slow down, and take in every moment
with each other.

when we arrived in eastsound, we sat in this little park,
ate a picnic, and just gazed out over the water...

and the lavender.

did we mention lavender?

we stayed at the Inn at Ship Bay, a nice little bed and breakfast with the best restaurant on orcas.
we'd highly recommend this place to anyone wishing a quiet retreat, a quality dinner, and a quiet evening.

the next day, our only adventure [excluding visiting
art studios/shops], was checking out mt constitution.

we have to confess, we drove to the top of this one.

we will surly visit orcas island in the future. we enjoyed the laid back atmosphere, and all of the art.

townsend's new bed

2009-05-27T22:00:00.000-07:00

townsend wanted to show off his new bed!

he's so happy because he can fit his whole body on it!

although, at first, he was more interested in the box it came in.

ps - townsend also wanted to let everyone know that he graduated from puppy obedience class!

it was hard to get a phot of him in his graduation cap!

my left arm.

2009-05-23T23:50:00.000-07:00

on the way home from the ER this evening, i [brooke] reflected on everything i've ever done to my left arm:

age 3-4: i fell over a pig fence and ripped a chunk of skin from under my bicep. there wasn't enough skin left to stitch it back together. [edit: just realized this was on my right arm.]
age 5-6: sliced my pinky open with a butcher knife. no stitches needed, but still have issues with control of my pinky. watch me play guitar, i rarely use my pinky.
age 8-9: i fell off my skateboard and split open my elbow. a trip to the ER for 3 stitches.
age 14-15: one of my best friends, and he is still one of my best friends, shot me in the arm with a high powered pellet gun. a trip to the ER for x-rays, pellet removal, and 3 stitches.
age 23: sliced the back of my thumb open down to the tendons with an exacto knife. a trip to the ER, 6 stitches and 6 weeks of healing time. it took me a year to get full movement back to my thumb.
age 31: fell off my bike while riding down the burke gilman trail and punched a dime-sized hole on my outer elbow. a trip to the ER, 3 x-rays and 3 stitches.

the good things that have happened to my left arm? my wedding ring!

columbia river gorge/beacon rock state park

2009-05-10T20:20:00.000-07:00

this past weekend we journeyed down to the columbia river gorge area to check out beacon rock state park. we wanted to give townsend a test drive at camping. he did exceptionally well...except for ripping three holes in our favorite tent. but you can't really blame him, he's only a puppy and not used to sleeping in a mesh container.

although townsend didn't receive high marks in the 'tent' area, he did awesome around camp. he was intriqued by all of the slugs, but didn't eat any. for he had a smorgsboard of sticks, bark, grass, and other assorted objects.

he really enjoyed the big picnic table. he loved jumping up on the benches so he could have a bird's eye view. he was up on the bench so long, that we finally just moved his water bowl up onto the table. spoiled rotten!

most of the time you can tell when he's ready to go. if he's tied up, he will start pulling with all of his might, as if to say "commmmmee oooonnnn!"

if you don't respond quick enough, he passes out for a nap. this dog loves four things: his tennis ball, treats, naps, and us!

so as he napped the late morning away, we hunkered down for a hiker's lunch! a BIG hiker's lunch! a safeway sub!

after we cramped down half a huge sub, we made our way to the trailhead for dog mountain. dog mountain is a rather strenuous hike with amazing views.

at our first overlook, about a third of the way up.

we all rested for a bit.

townsend said, 'i've never been this high up in my life!'

one. tuckered. puppy.

we sat and took the scenery in for a while.

we even saw some para gliders overhead.

enough break time, onward to the summit.

up the winding trail.

almost to the summit; you can see mt st helens in the distance.

i'm not sure what is more sloped, the girl and dog or the trees.

worn out.

the panoramic view from the top.

townsend, ready to head back down for dinner.

the next day we checked out beacon rock state park, where townsend got to run through tall grass and we got a chance to stroll by the columbia river and take in some fresh river air.

if there's one thing this dog loves, it's running through tall grass!

and rolling in it!

what a noble sporting dog!

Townsend _ spring 09

2009-05-09T11:37:00.000-07:00

my how he's grown; still goofy, just bigger.

this looks like one of those silly middle-school pictures.

can I have a treat?

I'm so worn out.

I can still fit!

was this made just for me?

I love to play in the yard. It's one of my favorite things to do.
And I like to eat sticks.
Yeah.
Play in the yard and eat sticks. with Olly.

this is my friend 'Olly.' he's an octopus, but I still like him.

I am trying to help them build my fence.

3 inches!

can't wait.

2009-05-04T20:14:00.000-07:00

when oh when will you open?
will you be open before 7am?
will you sell organic, fair trade coffee?
we can't wait.

Mt. Si - a Seattle Classic

2009-05-01T16:06:00.000-07:00

Mount Si is one of Seattle's classic hikes. This means one of two things...great views, and extremely busy. I refuse to do this hike on the weekend, so Townsend and I set off on a sunny Friday to hike this 4100' peak.

Just getting started in the old growth forest of the Central Cascades.

Stopping for a quick water break. Thank goodness that our Vet recommended that Townsend get his giardia vaccine!

A 250-year-old Doug Fir.

Townsend was enjoying all the sniffs.

We both started slowing down about 3 miles up, but kept pushing. We heard the views were worth it.

Wow. They were right.

Mt. Rainier from Mt. Si

This is the Snoqualmie Valley from the top. It's hard to see in the picture, but this looks along the valley to Bellevue, Seattle, the Puget Sound, all the way to the Olympic Mountains on the peninsula.
It was quite breathtaking.

Here's our view from the top looking west. Maybe we'll have to come up here to see the sunset.

Townsend loved it!

We met a nice older gentleman, Dave, at the top who snapped this picture. He climbs Mt. Si every week.

Hopefully we'll be back again soon. It's a great conditioner for summer backpacking. And it's always nice to have some rewarding views at the top.

Now....the hike back down and a long nap awaits us.

mariners v. rays - safeco

2009-04-21T22:33:00.000-07:00

andrea scored free tickets to the mariner v. ray game tonight! it's always a treat to head down to safeco; quite possible one of the best ballparks.

man, these were awesome seats! we haven't gotten seats like this in a long time. about twenty rows behind home plate!

we had beautiful weather to boot.

garlic fries. a safeco favorite. i even managed to push down a hot dog.

the view.

thanks to whoever gave us tickets!

we have it.

2009-04-17T21:48:00.000-07:00

i'm looking forward to my $20.

joint birthday bonfire

2009-04-04T23:59:00.000-07:00

we had some folks over for a joint birthday party: danelle and sarah. one wanted a bonfire, and one wanted ice cream; so we had both! and washed it down with some funfetti cake!

it was a great evening hanging out in our backyard, watching the flames dance and the stars appear. thanks to all who came out!

morning bike ride of vashon island

2009-04-04T16:00:00.000-07:00

took this morning to pack up the bikes, drive to the ferry [read: FERRY!], and ventured over to vashon island for a bike ride. ambitious plan, given the hills, but none-the-less fun!

enjoying the rural-like scenery and calmness.

trying to keep up.

self portrait while riding.

pausing for a "photo-opt." [read: we were dog tired!]

cascades from vashon.

olympics from vashon.

andrea looking 'tired' at the boat dock. i think she looks more sly then anything, but we were both quite tired.

alternate way to open stuff.

2009-03-26T18:21:00.000-07:00

not everyone needs the mini-screwdriver.

Day Off - Crystal Mountain Skiing

2009-03-24T20:00:00.000-07:00

There were a bunch of things i loved about teaching, but one ranked at the top of the list [somewhere between working with kids and rectangular pizza]: summer vacation! while i don't necessarily get a 'vacation' with my new job, i do get a few days off. with the amount of snow that's been falling late in this season, we felt that i was due for a day off.

we packed the car, dropped townsend off at pethotel for doggie day camp, and pointed the family truckster in the direction of our 'local' hill, crystal mountain.

as usual we stopped at the enumclaw safeway for donuts and chocolate milk.

it was great day skiing. the sun showed it's face a little, and the snow was good.

here's andrea racing down the mountain!
she has gotten very proficient over the past two years living in washington. i'm trying to talk her into going down to utah next winter; hope for the best!

brooke zipping down the hill. trying to be goofy!

a thirty year old trying a 180 degree spin!

here comes the sun...kinda.

today couldn't have been better, unless we were joined by friends. used the sunnto to see how much elevation we skied: 27201 vertical feet.

ps - townsend wanted us to let you know that he did very well on his 'paw-gress report' while we were away.

PBR

2009-03-22T18:52:00.000-07:00

our friend michael stopped through town this weekend and we got a chance to hang. he was in town for work, but had the time friday to go out to dinner with us; read: elliot bay brewhouse! we made arrangements to hook up with him on sunday for 'take you friends to work night.'

it was typical michael to tell us to meet him at the loading dock at the tacoma dome. when we arrived at the back entrance and phoned, he popped out of a door with backstage passes!
michael has the coolest job ever!

we made our way through the bowels of the dome to a patch of dirt and row of fences.

there andrea found one of her favorite things...
a rodeo waiting to happen! actually, it was more of a quasi-rodeo. diet-rodeo if you will...but it.was.awesome!

our first stop was the 'chutes.' this is where the cowboys...well...cowboy up. they strap themselves to a bull and try to hold on for 8 seconds.
these guys are so gentle of creatures, it's hard to believe there can get so riled up.

michael operates a camera in the chutes. when your flippin' channels and see bullriding, pause...see if it's PBR, and then wait for a chute-shot. that's michael behind it. like i said...his job is awesome!

next stop was the video truck; imagine a semi trailer filled with video screens, blinking lights, and wires. this is where they take care of the broadcast of the event. michael said it got very busy when the show was on, but now it just contained a guy playing poker on his laptop [sorry to narc you out. :)]

we couldn't believe the arsenal of cameras they used. this was mike's.

there was also the camera along side of the ring.

we both got to 'play' with it. this camera has mad-zoom and great depth of field!

we concluded our tour and made our way to our seats, via hot dogs and mountain dew; hey, sometimes you just have to live the life.

and waited patiently for the show to start.

here it goes!

Professional Bull Riding at it's best! [a very close second to the Jackson Hole Rodeo.

enjoying the action from the nose-bleed section. like i said, sometimes you just have to live the life.

bull riding. what a funny sport. totally enthrawling; but funny. 2.1 isn't going to cut it. andrea rooted hard for 'snake oil,' but was a little disappointed.

we finish with the bull riders equivalent to the zamboni. cute, in a wall-e sort of way...but no zamboni.

michael, thanks for the backstage tour of PBR. we both have a greater appreciation for what it takes to get it to our TV, and what a circus must be like.

all of the versus group was gracious, and we look forward to seeing you soon in tacoma!

Keechelus Ridge Snowshoe

2009-03-21T19:00:00.000-07:00

It's still full blown winter out here (in the mountains) so we're not too late to get in some more 'shoeing. We headed out past Snoqualmie summit to hike up to Keechelus Ridge.

With puppy in tow (or is that backwards?...who's walking who?) we must always remember his poop bags.

Townsend laughed as we strapped on our snowshoes. His are built in! It was funny to see his paws spread out for the whole trip. hey...it helped!

Just sniffing around. He loves trees.

Stay still for a picture?...I don't understand.

Now where exactly are we? Where is this ridge?

Taking a break

Guys! there's something down here!

Family photo:)

We finally made it up to the ridge.

There were some great views....but nothing compared to a clear day.

We all took a break. Brooke and Andrea munched on snacks. Townsend munched on branches.

Total elevation: 4469 ft.

It was fun getting out on a nice sunny-ish day.

Beautiful self portrait.

Back down the ridge and toward a warm car.

st patty's day 2009

2009-03-17T20:00:00.000-07:00

although we were not in chicago this st. patty's day, we missed you steve and maura, we decided to throw on our green and party at home.

the evening starting with andrea and townsend dancing the jig to some irish music.

we then settled into a dinner of corn-beef and homemade green beer [and water]!

mmm green rainier beer!

andrea broke out her 'blarney-boppers!' these are reserved only for 3/17.

even townsend got into the irish mood. he's such a festive dog!

happy st patty's day to all of you!

spring weather

2009-03-07T22:33:00.000-08:00

Nothing beats the Pacific Northwest in the spring. Especially after having a fairly dry winter, and then, come spring, and bam! we get dumped on.

What else to do but hit the slopes?

We headed up to Stevens Pass for a perfect powder day.
Visibility = 0

the chairlifts were cold and windy, so we were sure to cover as much skin as we could.

We were only skiing for about 8 hours, but that was long enough to camouflage our car beneath a good 10-12 " of snow.

The ride home was a little slow, and snowy...but we made it in time to pick up Townsend and head home for some warm drinks.

Cannon Beach_sat&sun

2009-02-22T22:09:00.000-08:00

we awoke to a beautiful morning in cannon beach. the sun was out, and the weather was warm. we hit up pig n pancake for some grub [they have an amazing dungeness crab and chess omelette with sourdough pancakes! be sure to stop by if you're in the area!]. post breakfast, we strolled the beach.

the monolith above lays on cannon beach and is called haystack rock.

townsend just loved being in the seagrass. it must be the upland bird dog in him.

townsend loved running around on the beach. a little blurry, as usual, and ears flopping.

after our beach walk, we windowed shopped. nothing too exciting, just nice to walk around a small town. as evening closed in it started to rain, so we seeked shelter in one of our favorite pizza places: pizza-a-fetta. this place is amazing, and rumored to be one of the top 50 pizzerias in the country; according to pizza today magazine...which we're thinking about subscribing to!

----end sat----

----begin sun----

another beautiful rainy, dreary pacific northwest greeted us to a new day. rain or no rain, we're going beach walking. as we were walking cannon beach in the cold drizzle, the sun decided to focus all of it's power to burning off the clouds.

we were treated to a FULL DOUBLE RAINBOW! [photo doesn't do it justice]

welcome back beautiful haystack!

cold, wet, and dog-covered-in-sand...what a great trip!

on our way out of town, we stopped at ecola state park. they have one of the most scenic overviews of the oregon coast.

what a perfect end to a great trip!

Cannon Beach_Night Arrival

2009-02-20T22:30:00.000-08:00

we rolled into Cannon Beach, OR this evening as dusk fell over the west coast and the sun sank a little lower than you'd think was possible. we got checked into a quaint little cottage, read: redone motel, and headed down to the beach for an evening stroll with our dog. here are our silhouettes:

townsend and andrea

brooke and townsend

townsend

andrea, townsend, and cold pacific ocean